Monday, November 30, 2015

The month of November marks the nineteenth month of our international online cooking group, The Cottage Cooking Club. As a group, recipe by recipe, we are cooking and learning our way through a wonderful vegetable cookbook written in 2011 by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, entitled „River Cottage Everyday Veg".

One of the declared aims of our cooking group is to make a decided effort to use as much regional, organic and also seasonal produce as is reasonably possible.

This month I prepared six of the ten designated recipes, plus one extra. I will write about each dish in the order in which I prepared them.

My first recipe for this November post is the colorful Beetroot and walnut hummus (page 300) from the chapter "Mezze & Tapas“.

I chosse to serve the Beetroot and walnut hummus as a starter, dip-style, with warmed tortilla triangles. If you are a beetroot lover and if you are looking for a different and eye-catching recipe to try, then this hummus is for you.

For the second recipe this month I chose the Celery, orange and pecans (page 116) from the chapter "Raw Assemblies".

I decided to serve this dish on individual plates as I was thinking this would be a perfect fresh starter for a festive dinner. And I was not disappointed. I arranged a few slices of celery, bright orange segments and freshly cracked walunts (instead of the pecans) on the plates and added just a few drops of the „barely dressing“ (orange juice, zest, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper).

A very nice wintry combination of fresh, bright and slightly bitter flavors that works - perhaps not only as a starter to a substantial meal but also as a in-between course, to re-frehen your taste buds. A great recipe to keep in your repertoire of elegant winter salads.

The third recipe that go my attention this month was the Kale speltotto with goat´s cheese (page 280), from the chapter „Pasta & Rice“.

This recipe requires a few steps more than some of the others but it is well worth it. First you prepare the pearled spelt or pearl barley (which is what I used). Then you prepare the onions (nice and translucent and soft). And stir it all together with some nice white wine (not unlike preparing a classic risotto, hence the name of this dish). You add the stock and cook and stir some more. Then you sweat the leeks and wilt your greens and once the barley is all cooked and creamy, you add the greens and the leeks to the dish.

Instead of adding the goat´s cheese on top as extra cheese, I decided to grate more for the finished dish and leave it at that – the cheese gave so much flavor to the dish, that it was not really necessary to add some more.

The fourth recipe was the one with the biggest fun factor. Roast new potatoes with two mojo sauces (page 358) from the chapter „Roast, Grill & Barbecue“, was the kids` favorite this month, hands down. Mojo originated in the Canary Islands, where the main varieties are red mojo (mojo picante oder mojo picón) and green mojo (mojo verde).

In the Canary Islands, these sauces are served with small local potatoes, the papas arrugadas or are simply enjoyed with country-style white bread.

You start Hugh´s variation of the Mediterranean recipe by preparing the two sauces. The „mojo picón“ was up first – using dried chilies, roasted red peppers, lots of garlic, ground cumin, sweet smoked Spanish paprika, white wine vingar and olive oil – the resulting sauce was bright red and spicy and full of smokey flavor. While Hugh calls for a coriander version of the green mojo, I opted for an Italian parsley version instead – coriander being the one herb that he kids do not really enjoy. So, more garlic again, cumin, white wine vingar and a rather big handful of fresh Italian parsley plus some more olive oil turned into a bright green, garlicky sauce.

Once the sauces are done, it is a good idea to let them sit on the counter or fridge for a while – to allow the flavors to develop properly. And the right time to prepare those potatoes, lots of them – dipping is always received rather enthusiastically at our house and this recipe was no exception – we really enjoyed the big bold flavors of the sauces that played so nicely against the crunchy, salty potatoes with their creamy interiors.

The fifth recipe was Parsnip and ginger soup (page 157) from the chapter "Hefty Soups". Another one of those wonderful soup recipes from this book that I so enjoy.

Creamy parsnips are abundant at this time of year and when paired with onion, garlic, fresh ginger, and lots of spices (cardamom, cumin, cayenne pepper) plus milk and vegetable stock (page 130) - make a lovely, velvety soup that is sure to warm you from the inside out – perfect after skating maybe…as a finish I added a few drops of lovely hazelnut oil from my local oil mill as well as slithered hazelnuts – perfect.

Recipe number six this month was Lentil and tomato salad (page 237) from the chapter „Store-cupboard suppers“.

This was my personal favorite this month – what is not to love about a lovely lentil salad made with French Puy lentils that keep their shape so well in a salad and some fabulous honey-roasted cherry tomatoes (page 343).

The nuttiness of the lentils, the sweetness of the roasted tomatoes, the tanginess of the dressing – this is my idea of a perefct hearty fall/winter salad – loved it!

As a little encore I made the Roasted parsnip chips (page 357) from the chapter of „Roast, Grill & Barbecue“ again that we made back in November 2014. Always such a delightful side dish, always much appreciated by the crowds – creamy, crunchy and very tasty.

In summary, another month full of wonderful vegetable dishes – this month we were delighted to enjoy a number of hearty fall recipes, main courses as well as side dishes or appetizer for lunch and dinner. What can possibly be better than to cook with seasonal ingredients even at this time of year.

Please note, that for copyright reasons, we do NOT publish the recipes. If you enjoy the recipes in our series, hopefully, the wonderfully talented and enthusiastic members of The Cottage Cooking Club and their wonderful posts can convince you to get a copy of this lovely book. Better yet, do make sure to join us in this cooking adventure.

To see how wonderful all the dishes from my fellow Cottage Cooking Club members turned out this month, please visit here. They would all appreciate a visit!

Friday, November 27, 2015

Well, it has reached that time of year again, it feels as if Christmas is just around the corner. It’s that time when we tackle the various baking challenges that the festive period has to offer. For today´s festive bake, I’ve had a go at an alltime favorite of mine with a rather nice twist, a Chocolate Butter Cake with Walnuts. Think of this cake as basically a cross between a Dutch boterkoek and chocolate shortbread. Crunchy sides, soft, slightly chewy middle and incredibly rich and quite indulgent at this time of year.

To be honest, I don’t think you can properly enjoy the festive seasons if you don’t spend part of it in the kitchen with the aromas of spices and chocolate and citrus filling the air, using every pot, pan, bowl, whisk and sieve, not to mention all those cake molds, cookie cutters etc.

This is a nice cake to bake in a square cake pan or a round one if you prefer. With so few ingredients, it does require some good butter but also some high-quality cocoa powder for a really indulgent, chocolatey taste. So, for the best dark and velvety cocoa powder, try shops that specialize in fine chocolates or look out for your favorite good-quality brand - for the best tasting cake with a dark, rich color, I recommend you use Dutch process cocoa powder.

Butter your cake pan, line the base and sides with baking parchment, then butter again.

Put the butter into the bowl of a food mixer, add the sugar and vanilla sugar and cream for a good 5 minutes until soft and fluffy. Please note: the brown sugar will not beat up as fluffy as white sugar.

Break one egg into a small bowl and beat lightly with a fork to combine (keep the small bowl for later). With the beater at a moderate speed, add the egg to the butter and sugar mixture.

In a separate bowl, sieve together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and sea salt.

Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until thoroughly creamed.

Mix in the walnuts or other nuts you are using (this is best done with a wooden spoon as the dough is rather stiff at this point).

Transfer the mixture to the lined cake pan, gently smoothing the surface (this is best done with lighty floured hands).

In the same small bowl as above (remember), break up the other egg, mix with a fork and brush the surface of the cake.

Then score the surface with the tines of your fork (in a criss-cross pattern).

Put the cake pan in the pre-heated oven and bake for about 35 to 40 minutes, or until the cake is firm to the touch but not completely firm, it should be a bit soft to the touch in the middle of the cake.

Transfer to a rack and leave to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before turning out and slicing. NOTE: this cake is best served on the day it was made, we love it when it is still a bit warm and although it might crumble a bit when you slice it, it is utterly delicious when warm, Any leftover cake can be wrapped tightly in plastic and kept for up to 2 days.

The moistness of the cake will depend not just on the addition of all that good butter (this is a butter cake after all), but how long you bake it. Short of the delicate moment when you mix it all together, it is the baking time that is truly make or break. What you are looking for is the moment, somewhere between 35 and 40 minutes, when your cake is crispy round the edge, but still a bit soft in the center. When baking this cake, please remember that when it comes out of the oven the cake should still be moist - sticky even - in the middle. As it cools the crust will crisp.

My perfect moment for such buttery, chocolatey goodness is in the afternoon, around 4 pm, when a nice piece or slice goes perfectly with a small, strong coffee. It acts as a pick-me-up, a little zip of energy to get you through till lunch or dinner. Or perhaps just through till your next piece of chocolate cake.

Since it is the season not only for showing off all your baked goods, but all your festive decorations and ornaments as well, I decided to bake teeny tiny gingerbread houses and let the kids decorate them while I rummaged through countless boxes searching for my treasured handcrafted wooden set of Hänsel and Gretel and the witch. As I happily retrieved my heirloom figurines from all that tissue paper that they were wrapped in, the kids had put their final touches to the houses and they loved how it all looked - the cake, the gingerbread houses, the powdered sugar snow and the little fairy tale figurines – not a bad start to the festive season.

Sunday, November 22, 2015

When you visit Belgium, you will notice that Christmastime is always marked by the presence of Speculoos cookies. In fact, pretty much every day of the year is marked with Speculoos, but at Christmas, they go from being delicious small additions to a cup of coffee or tea to something altogether grander, culminating into huge cookies that are shaped into the image of Saint Nicolas in December. And Speculoos cookies are also a feature of Christmas in the Netherlands, where their name is slighly changed to Speculaas. If you want to make Speculaas cookies, you can make them either by rolling out the dough and cutting or by using the traditional wooden molds to shape into windmills, flowers or animals.

But there is also a different version of Speculaas, which is called Gevulde Speculaas, meaning “filled speculaas”. This delicious version is made with a layer of dough, similar to that used to make Speculaas cookies, then filled withalmond paste, and topped with more dough. The whole is then baked, and finally cut into slices.

The dough is easily put together and so is the filling which I always just assumed was made from Marzipan, but it is something that the Dutch call Amandelspijs, meaning „almond paste“. This is a paste made from ground almonds, sugar and eggs, and somtimes with a little lemon zest which does add a little extra flavor and a certain freshness to the filling.

When it comes to the spices, there is traditional Dutch mixture called Speculaaskruiden, meaning “speculaas spices” that can be made from spices you probably have already stored in your cupboard. If you follow my blog, that spice mixture is rather well known to you. Personally I believe that Gevulde Speculaas is best made with freshly mixed spices but you could use other spice mixture you like, such as Pumpkin Pie Spices (rather American and available online), or even Mixed Spice (rather British and also available online as well as at your favorite British shop).

The resulting Gevulde Speculaas cake is very rich, as the speculaas does not turn crisp like the Speculaas cookies, but instead you get a spiced pastry encasing the rich almond filling. You can really use as little or as much filling as you like but I believe a ratio of equal parts pastry and filling seems to work best.

This recipe requires three components: first the Almond Paste for the filling. Second the Speculaas Spice Mix for the dough. And third the Speculaas Dough itself. You should start off by making the Almond Paste for the Filling:

Gevulde Speculaas

Filling - Almond Paste

Ingredients for Almond Paste

125 grams (4½ oz) natural almonds, skins off

125 grams (10 tbsps) superfine (caster) sugar

1 egg (L), organic or free range

1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest (organic lemon) NOTE: if you prefer a thicker layer of almond paste, you can double the amout of ingredients.

Preparation of the Almond Paste

Grind the almonds for one or two minutes in a food processor, until rather fine.

Then add the sugar, and grind for another minute or two.. The almonds should be very finely ground now.

Add the egg and the lemon zest to the food processor and process further until the almond paste comes together.

Wrap the almond paste well and place in the refrigerator. NOTE: If you prefer a more pronounced almond taste, you could always add a drop or two of natural almond extract - but remember when it comes to almond extract, a little goes a long way

Speculaas Spice Mix

Ingredients for the Speculaas Spice Mix

4 tsp ground cinnamon (*)

1 tsp ground cloves (*)

1 tsp ground mace (*)

1/3 tsp ground ginger (*)

1/5 tsp (a pinch) ground white pepper

1/5 tsp (a pinch) ground cardamom

1/5 tsp (a pinch) ground coriander seeds

1/5 tsp (a pinch) gound anise seeds or star anise

(*) These are essential. The other spices are entirely optional

NOTE: If you have whole spices at home, you can grind the spices yourself using a coffee grinder, or use a food processor and a fine sieve.

Preparation of the Speculaas Spice Mix

Carefully measure out spices.

Mix all spices well.

Scoop the mix into a spice jar with a tight-fitting lid.

Label the jar with the name of the spice mix as well as the preparation date.

And use for baking Speculaas cookies, Gevulde Speculaas, muffins, Christmas cookies, waffles, cakes and much more.

Grease the baking pan with some butter, line bottom with some parchment paper and butter again.

Pre-heat your oven to 180° C (356° F).

Divide the dough into two portions.

On a very lightly work surface, roll out both portions odf the dough until they are about the size of your baking pan.

Put one of the layers in the pan and press it lightly to fit the bottom.

Lightly beat the egg with a teaspoon cold water.

Brush some of the egg wash over the dough in the baking pan.

Roll out the almond paste between two sheets of saran wrap, until it is exactly as big as the pan, and put it on the dough in the pan.

Press the almond paste lightly down to fit in the pan, and brush some more of the egg wash over it.

Now put the second layer of dough on top of the paste, press it lightly, and make as smooth as possible.

Brush the rest of the egg wash over the dough.

Decorate the pastry with the halved almonds.

Bake for 40 minutes or until the cake feels firm to the touch.

Let cool completely in the pan, then cut into pretty slices and serve the same day – but wrapped well, the Gevulde Speculaas keeps for a few days as it is very moist from the Alomnd Paste.

As I mentioned above, Speculaaskruiden („speculaas“ in the Netherlands, „speculoos“ in Belgium and „Spekulatius“ in Germany) is the typical flavor in a number of cookies and other baked goods. You can bake the traditional Speculaas Cookies with them (here are mine), you can also add the Speculaas Spice Mix to cakes and muffins like my Speculaas Muffins I made a few weeks ago (here) or wonderfully fragrant Speculaas Biscotti I made last December (here is the recipe).

So, there is no reason to wait any longer to bake a Gevulde Speculaas and then let your imagination be your guide and come up with other lovely creations using the amazingly fragrant and utterly delicious, seasonal Speculaas Spice Mix.

St. Martin was born in 316 or 317 and started out as a Roman soldier, he was baptized as an adult, became a monk and was named Bishop of Tours on July 4th, 372. It is understood that he was a kind man who led a quiet and simple life.

The most famous legend of his life is that one cold winter day, during a snowstorm, he was riding through the country when a shivering beggar came his way. Since he had neither food nor money, St. Martin cut his wollen cloak in half with his sword to share it with the freezing beggar. It is said that he thus saved the beggar from a certain death.

Every year, St. Martin´s Day is celebrated to commemorate the day of his burial on November 11th, 397.

In some parts of the Netherlands, in a small part of Belgium, and in some areas of Germany and Austria, children walk in St. Martin´s processions through the villages and cities. They carry colorful St. Martin´s paper lanterns and sing St. Martin´s songs. Usually, the procession starts at a church and ends at a public square. The lantern processions are aften accompanied by an actor impersonating the Saint. He is on horseback dressed like a Roman soldier and wrapped in a red woolen cloak. When the procession reaches the town square, a St. Martin’s bonfire is lit and in some parts of Germany, such as the Rhineland (where we live) and the Ruhr area, Sweet Dough Men ("Weckmänner") are distributed to the children.

The tradition of the mostly handcrafted paper lanterns goes back to former times, when people lit candles to honor their saints and when lanterns were put up everywhere in town when a bishop dropped by for a visit.

The custom of lighting a St. Martin´s bonfire after the lantern procession represents the beginning of festivities. In former times, most of the work on the fields had been completed and now it was time to celebrate, drink and eat. Traditionally, a fat goose and sweet bread treats were served.

Today, in the days and weeks leading up to the feast of St. Martin, children craft their own St. Martin´s lanterns in school or in kindergarten.

On the day of the celebrations, after participating in one of the numerous lantern procession´s, the children go door to door singing St. Martin´s songs in exchange for sweets or other small treats. Singing in exchange for candies is called "schnörzen" around here in the Rhineland.

As mentioned above, to conclude the celebrations of St. Martin´s Day, the traditional treat that is given to the children after the St. Martin´s Day procession, are pastries called “Weckmänner”, baked goods in the shape of a man holding a clay pipe.

Every year, I also bake a few of these "Sweet Dough Man" for family and friends.

Today, on St. Martin´s Day, we will be watching the St. Martin´s procession along our street, right in front of our house. We will decorate the front yard with lots of colorful lanterns. And after the procession, the children will carry their candle-lit lanterns from house to house in our neighbourhood singing St. Martin´s songs, receiving sweets and other little treats. We will be waiting for them with baskets full of sweets, apples and clementines.

The festivities in memory of St. Martin bear some resemblance to Halloween that was celebrated in many parts of the world just eleven days ago.

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Before the pre-Christmas baking frenzy officially season starts, and I find myself baking through countless delightful Christmas cookies, I am posting a recipe for Speculaas Mufffins with Marzipan. You will be delighted with this recipe as it is full of fabulous warm spices, can be put together in no time and is absolutely ideal for enjyoing at this time of year together with a steaming cup of coffee, tea or mulled wine.

If you take the time to prepare my Speculaas Spice Mix before getting ready for baking, you will be well prepared for baking many of my up-coming recipes and lots of other wonderful Christmas cookies. And the muffins will taste so much better if you prpeare them with my homemade spice mix using the freshest spices available. The smell during baking will be incredibly tempting, aromas of spices and brown sugar will waft through your house. But if you prefer to use a ready-made, good-quality spice mix for speculoos, by all means do so, as it is widely available online or at your favorite spice merchant.

Of course you can always use a ready-made spice mix but if you do take the time to put together your own spice mix, it will most certainly come in handy during the up-coming baking season in November and December and I must admit that it never ceases to amaze me how much better fresh spices taste and smell.

So, November baking season has started and I cannot imagine a recipe that is more fitting or more delicious than this one for baking at this time of year. This way, I can enjoy one of these Speculaas Muffins with a cup of my favorite coffee while, at the same time, taking the time to ponder the countless delightful Christmas recipes that I am planning to prepare during the up-coming weeks. I cannot wait!

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